L74: Periodontal Disease Flashcards
What is periodontology?
The study of periodontal tissues in health and disease; including the causes, prevention and treatment of diseases of the periodontal tissues.
Name the periodontal tissues:
- Gingiva;
- Alveolar bone;
- Root cementum;
- Periodontal ligament.
How should healthy gingiva appear?
- Pink;
- Stippled;
- Knife-edge margin;
- Free gingival groove.
What causes the stippling in gingiva?
Binding of collagen to the lamina propria
What should a healthy gingiva probe depth be?
1-2mm
What is periodontal disease?
A group of diseases affecting the periodontal tissues, representing an immune reaction (innate and adaptive) to adjacent microbial plaque.
What are the major causes of plaque retention?
- Calculus;
- Dental restorations;
- Carious cavities;
- Partial dentures;
- Orthodontic appliances;
- Mal-positioned teeth.
What is calculus?
A form of hardened dental plaque, caused by the precipitation of minerals in saliva and gingival crevicular fluid
What is inflammation?
The response of living tissue to injury:
- Dilation of blood vessels;
- Increased permeability of vessel walls;
- Inflammatory exudate;
- Emigration of wbc from blood vessels to tissues.
In gingivitis, what happens after microbial colonisation into periodontal tissue?
An increase in neutrophil and leukocytic infiltrate
What are the common symptoms of gingivitis?
- Erythema (redness);
- Swelling;
- Bleeding on gentle probing.
What is gingivitis?
Inflammation confined to the gingiva
What is periodontitis?
Apical extension of the gingival inflammation
What is the difference between gingivitis and periodontitis?
Gingivitis: No loss of connective tissue attachment;
Periodontitis: Destruction of the connective tissue attachment, bone loss and true pocket formation.
What could lead to the indication of a false pocket?
Gingival swelling
To observe a true pocket there must be…
Loss of connective tissue attachment
What can be observed with periodontitis?
- True pocket formation;
- Bone loss;
- Tooth mobility.
Why does the progression of periodontitis differ in different sites in the mouth and between people?
- Driven by the immune response to plaque bacteria;
- Plaque accumulates at different rates around different surfaces of the mouth, depending on where is prone (malpositioned teeth etc.);
- Depends on the susceptibility of the host.
What are the main risk factors that contribute to getting periodontitis?
- Smoking;
- Diabetes;
- Stress;
- Genes.
What are the methods of treatment (and prevention) of periodontal disease?
- Plaque control;
- Removal of plaque retention.
What is the major aetiological agent in periodontal disease?
Bacterial plaque
Which immune responses respond to periodontal disease?
Innate and adaptive
